Only Time Will Tell (The Clifton Chronicles series Book 1)

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Whenever I questioned my mother about his death, she didn’t say any more than that he’d served with the Royal Gloucestershire Regiment and had been killed fighting on the Western Front only days before the Armistice was signed. Grandma said my dad had been a brave man, and once when we were alone in the house she showed me his medals. My grandpa rarely offered an opinion on anything, but then he was deaf as a post so he might not have heard the question in the first place. He achieved this after three years of training offered by Brasenose College, Oxford. However, this academic feat was not without claims that he was actually never registered as an undergraduate student in this College. Despite such claims, he thrived in the field of athletics competing for his school and later on for England as well as Great Britain. Mr Archer’s life was not short of controversies and much speculation. During his time at Brasenose College, he received much criticism on his financial state of affairs. I love characters that you can root for! Harry is the definitive underdog character. He is being raised by a single mother in a time where this was not common. Harry seems content to follow his father's footsteps. He isn't that interested in school and then fate intervenes and sends him on a different path. I came here for a good mystery book and I got , predictable twists and dicey situations , obvious and annoying cliffhanger , *I yawned 1000 times* revelations , and the worst ending .

Thinking about all the cliche tropes* isn't this the same story we read everywhere ? The same cliche trope , the same dialogues , the same situation , I mean Mr. Archer I excepted something new and i have full right to feel cheated ! Story gets monotonous to the core, author could have simply finished the book in a trilogy manner but now there are 6 more books in the series, the plot is lost, the story too predictable. And I don't think I want to waste any more time reading this shit ,*BOOK*. Almost every predictable situation is there. The all sacrificing mother. A villain/bully in the hostel, and the girl's father who would go to any length to prevent the marriage.I promised my mum I'd be on time for the first choir practice, even though I knew it would be my last, as Miss Monday would soon realize I couldn't read or write. And it would have been my last, if it hadn't been obvious to anyone listening that my singing voice was in a different class to that of any other boy in the choir. In fact, the moment I opened my mouth, everyone fell silent, and the looks of admiration, even awe, that I had desperately sought on the football field, were happening in church. Miss Monday pretended not to notice. Harry Clifton, stupid. He’s on a school trip to Rome and I promised to get away and spend the day with him.’ He didn’t need to spell out that Papa wouldn’t have approved. ‘All you have to do,’ he continued, ‘is ask Mama if she could take you to Rome for the day.’

To begin with, I didn't notice that anyone who sat near me in church on a Sunday morning stopped singing whenever I opened my mouth. I wouldn't have given it a second thought if Mum hadn't suggested I join the choir. I laughed scornfully; after all, everyone knew the choir was only for girls and sissies. I would have dismissed the idea out of hand if the Reverend Watts hadn't told me that choirboys were paid a penny for funerals and tuppence for weddings; my first experience of bribery. But even after I'd reluctantly agreed to take a vocal test, the devil decided to place an obstacle in my path, in the form of Miss Eleanor E. Monday. What a fantastic book. Not just in plot, but in nuance too. This was the first book I read by Jeffrey Archer, but I have every intention of reading many more after this one. Well I am definitely not gonna read the rest of the six books because I don't care about Harry Clifton anymore. I didn’t discuss my plan with Harry or Deakins. Harry would undoubtedly have disapproved, he’s such a morally upright fellow, and Deakins wouldn’t have been able to understand why anyone would want to fail an exam. Archer chooses to tell his story through several different characters. Each segment begins with a short chapter told in the first person by whomever we are going to be hearing from, then goes into third person focusing on the new “narrator”. Each character has slightly different – or more – information than the others, so as we switch perspective we also slowly begin to piece together the real story of Harry’s life, the death of his father, his journey through school and his relationships with family and friends. The style takes a little getting used to, but is very effective. The plot slowly unravels as we learn how each character reveals what they know and what they have done and how it all affects Harry and his family.

Series of books by Jeffrey Archer

What's the significance of the novel's title, "Only Time Will Tell"? How does it apply to events in the story? In fact I must have seen him at least a dozen times during the next three years, but he was never able to recall any of those occasions, until we met up in Rome. The rest of the Barrington family play a large role in the book, too. Elizabeth Barrington, Giles’ mother, is always sweet and encouraging. Giles’ grandfather, Walter, is also hugely supportive. Hugo, Giles’ father, is the antithesis of that, and leaves much to be desired. It is Giles’ middle sister, though, who has Harry’s heart. Emma Barrington is Harry’s one true love. But will their love last? Will there be more obstacles to overcome? “If you make a deal with a fool, don’t be surprised when they act foolishly.” Abel moves to America through escaping to Siberia and Turkey in the height of World War I. He built his way right from the bottom to become a wealthy hotel chain owner. William’s father dies and his step-father mishandles their wealth. He is determined to bring things under control and build a name for himself as a top banker. Both of them are consumed by the desire to make it in life and discredit their critics and are fueled by hatred for the people and circumstances which made life difficult for them while growing up. When their paths eventually cross, they become enemies and each purposes to destroy the other. In 1985, CBS made Kane and Abel into a television mini-series.

Does the fact that the book ends with a cliff-hanger make you eager for the next installment in the series? Or do you wish this book's ending had offered more closure...a gentler "angel of repose"? Only Time Will Tell has many narrators: Harry’s mother, a young woman he loves, his best friend, his mentor, and a man who could be his father. Each tells the story from a different perspective. So we may know more about Harry’s past than he does – but not what Harry’s going to do when he finds out. Be prepared for surprising developments that upend all your expectations and keep you guessing. Sometimes you read a book everyone else seems to loveLoveLOVE and then wonder if you bought the same book everyone else did because as far as you're concerned, it stank. For me, that would be this book. Whenever I questioned my mother about his death, she didn't say any more than that he'd served with the Royal Gloucestershire Regiment and had been killed fighting on the Western Front only days before the Armistice was signed. Grandma said my dad had been a brave man, and once when we were alone in the house she showed me his medals. My grandpa rarely offered an opinion on anything, but then he was deaf as a post so he might not have heard the question in the first place.Every character was well thought out and interesting. They each held their own in their chapters and I actually liked them all equally(apart from the dastardly villain that is).